Have heard pro's and con's on downshifting vx automatic shifing...does it hurt the transmission to do it...I know brakes are cheaper but if it puts a drag on the transmission then why did they put the option on the car?

 

Msgump, not having a better understanding of the internal workings of the Crossfires Automatic tranny, I can only tell you that I always heard it was harder on them to manually down shift than it was to manually up shift.
I'm sure it's harder on your CV joints, timing chain, and differentials ring and pinion because of the sudden jolt caused by the instant deceleration. But then some of that shock would be absorbed by your torque converter as long as the lock up feature disengages quick enough. Being electronic, it probably does.
Having a 6 spd I seldom down shift to slow down (unless of course I'm on a really curvy road where I ALWAYS take advantage of the Crossfire being a "Sports Car"). Besides, brake pads are so much less expensive to replace than a clutch.
With a manual shift, you can "blip" the throttle to help match the engines RPMs with those of the spinning clutch plate and thus eliminating some of the extra strain on the drive train. Something you can't do with an automatic.
I suppose if you don't do it ALL the time, you'll probably never experience any problems, it's a pretty heavy duty transmission. After all, in most owners manuals they tell you to down shift to a lower gear to help facilitate braking on steep hills. (I wonder how much more work automatic transmission shops get in San Francisco compared to the Flat Lands?)

 

[quote=+fireamx]Msgump, not having a better understanding of the internal workings of the Crossfires Automatic tranny, I can only tell you that I always heard it was harder on them to manually down shift than it was to manually up shift.
I'm sure it's harder on your CV joints, timing chain, and differentials ring and pinion because of the sudden jolt caused by the instant deceleration. But then some of that shock would be absorbed by your torque converter as long as the lock up feature disengages quick enough. Being electronic, it probably does.
Having a 6 spd I seldom down shift to slow down (unless of course I'm on a really curvy road where I ALWAYS take advantage of the Crossfire being a "Sports Car"). Besides, brake pads are so much less expensive to replace than a clutch.
With a manual shift, you can "blip" the throttle to help match the engines RPMs with those of the spinning clutch plate and thus eliminating some of the extra strain on the drive train. Something you can't do with an automatic.
I suppose if you don't do it ALL the time, you'll probably never experience any problems, it's a pretty heavy duty transmission. After all, in most owners manuals they tell you to down shift to a lower gear to help facilitate braking on steep hills. (I wonder how much more work automatic transmission shops get in San Francisco compared to the Flat Lands?)[/quot

Thanks for the information....glad someone out there read my question finally....I think if I am not speeding and coming up to a light it might not be a drastic change to downshift just to slow down until the light changes rather than hit the brake...but I'm still open to opinions....

 

I shift mine up and down all the time. As long as you are not going into 1st at 60 you should be fine. These trannys will drop 3 or 4 gears by themselves, I cant see where doing it manually would hurt anything.

 

Holding the autostick to the left will allow the car to downshift at the optimal points without over revving the engine.
If you toggle the autostick to the left one gear at a time it won't allow you to downshift to far so either way no harm in my opinion.

 

Great I just wanted some reassurance that I wasn't going to cause damage to my "baby"...

 

I downshift mine all the time, mainly dealin with freakin Austin traffic !!! Like Valkey said, these cars are smarter than most of the people drivin'em !!! I didn't type that did I ???

 

Beep-Beep zoom!! When in Rome, Blow and Go!

John P.

 

I think the electronics in the trans prevent you from doing anything too spectaculary stupid with it. I use the manual shift about 30% of the time, usually on windy roads or in traffic. It never seems to have any problems, plus I notice that it downshifts plenty on it own in auto mode.

 

I'm not sure about this but I think the autotranny in the xfire matches revs when you downshift. I say this only because the few times I downshifted to slow down I never felt any jerking or drastic engine braking, only a gradual and smooth slowing down exactly as if I had blipped the throttle. But I never really watched the tack to verify this. I don't hear an actual blip of the throttle but it is more like a perfect match of rpm and speed.

 

Wow. Didn't know this. Will have to try it out as I am always toggling to downshift.

Thanks VG!

 

I have been in the mountains over the past couple of weeks ,and have been using the stick shift, so smoooth no over reving and no need to hit the brakes. Following my buddy in his Z3 Bmw standard, I spent no on the brake and more time on the accelerator,the comprecion of the engine acts as a 'Jake brake"and makes anticipating curves a joy, sorry read "ORGANISIM"

 

Organisim????

 

You mean that when I down shift it doesn't reverse the clutch face wear. OH MY?

I use the manual tranny in my Sports Car to slow down all the time. Having the front wheels work only on the steering part of negotiating a tight turn puts less stress on them and more control. When you figure, brake pad wear vrs clutch plate wear, you are forgeting the cost of front tire wear and the cleaners you buy to make your wheels shiny again. Not sure it comes out equal but I'm willing to pay for the extra control through turns. Especially on wet pavement or snow. And I spend less time sticking my hands and a rag through the wheels.

As for the autoshift tranny, you can't hurt it. The car is smarter than the driver ( which says what about those who chose an automatic ?) and you really can't hurt it by downshifting. Mashing the throttle to the floor going forward probably hurts it more as it upshifts much harder and crisper than it downshifts. Besides, this is a small engine for this tranny.
Further, I don't think it is even possible to overrev the engine downshifting the auto, maybe in stick mode, but the manual is very easy to over rev. Pull fifth to fourth too quick and miss the gate. You end up in second at 70 MPH when you let out the clutch. Car doesn't like it.



roadster with a stick

 

Thanks for the comments, especially from the CC members. I always get my questions answered on this forum. I did find that even with an automatic if you keep hitting the shift lever to the left quickly it will find 2nd gear rapidly with some pretty high revs, although it seems to always shift @ 6K RPM's up or down.
Also found a new way to wave to the MB SLK's behind me, just raise and lower the spoiler manually.
Fun ride.
tjinaz

 

I can't comment about downshifting the automatic. I would suggest referring to the owners manual for specifics. I am sure it goes into great detail.

As for down-shifting a manual transmission, I own a standard in large part so I can downshift the transmission. One benefit of downshifting is to slow the car as you corner, set the car up for the turn, and position the engine to accelerate out at peak performance.

Another reason is to simply slow the car down.

I have never had to replace a transmission or even do clutch work. And no drive-line problems either. Every driver is different.